


Blooming

by GingerEl



Series: LuNoct Week 2020 [5]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, Alternate Universe - Hospital, Dating, Developing Relationships, F/M, Flirting, Fluff, Language of Flowers, Light Angst, Minor Prompto Argentum/Ignis Scientia, Miscommunication, Non-Explicit Sex, Pining, discussions of illness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-25
Updated: 2020-09-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:29:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,893
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26649829
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GingerEl/pseuds/GingerEl
Summary: Luna likes the flowers littering her patient’s bedsides, likes the carefully crafted bouquets with their barely there sweet scents.Luna likes the delivery man too.“I ran out of pure white roses,” Noctis is telling her patient’s grandson, “But we had these pink tipped ones that I think compliment the daisies even better.”When the grandson is gone Noctis turns right to her like he'd known she was lurking there the whole time.Without words Noctis raises his hand and shows her the single lavender coloured rose held between his fingers.“Oh,” Luna says without thinking, “Did that fall out of the bouquet? Should I take it in for you?”Noctis smiles and Luna enjoys the way it pulls up one side of his mouth and warms his eyes.“Nah,” he says almost lazily, pushing the bloom towards her, “This one’s for you.”Alternatively: Luna is a hard working doctor, Noct is the florist hand delivering flowers to her patients. And eventually her.Written for LuNoct Week 2020 Day 5 Prompt: Florist/Coffee Shop AU
Relationships: Lunafreya Nox Fleuret/Noctis Lucis Caelum
Series: LuNoct Week 2020 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1933219
Comments: 10
Kudos: 36
Collections: Lunoct Week 2020





	Blooming

**Author's Note:**

> This got away from me - I don’t know what to say.  
> This is technically a modern AU but I didn’t want to set it in a particular city in real life so I’m still just using place names from Canon and you can imagine them in whatever parts of the world you prefer.  
> Also, this is not really how hospitals and stuff actually works okay but I wanted to simplify it down so we weren’t focusing on the little details because the plot had already gotten out of control.
> 
> Content warning: large parts of this takes place in a hospital and alludes to humans dealing with long term illnesses and undergoing treatments like chemo and stuff even though I never explicitly mention anything specifically. Approach with caution if this might be upsetting to you, no hard feelings if you’ve gotta leave to take care of yourself <3
> 
> Sorry Ravus, you a bad man in this one boo.

Incision

Luna’s seen him around a few times.

The first few times she thought he was related to on of the long stay patients; an infrequent but sweet visitor trying his best to make a relative feel better. But then she caught sight of him in a different hallway entering one room with two bouquet of flowers and shortly exiting to ask one of the nurses for directions somewhere else.

Luna’s noticed him around because it’s impossibly not to with the way his worn jeans fit and his endless cycle of dark t-shirts. Almost always he wears a hat over what Luna suspects to be messy hair, shifting from snapbacks to beanies as the weather turns colder.

Luna supposes he’s the delivery man for the local florist shop though she has no idea where that is and, if she allows herself to be a little judgementally honest, he seems a little old for it. They must be around the same age, she thinks, judging by the dark scruff of beard he wears.

Whatever the reason, Luna's not complaining. When he's done with his deliveries she gets to watch him walk away.

It’s a nice view.

\- - -

“Hey,” a voice says, pulling Luna away from her coffee. Her break has been a _long_ time coming and she’s a little frustrated at the interruption until she turns to meet blue-grey eyes paired with an almost awkward smile - her favourite delivery man stood the other side of the desk clutching a large bouquet of what Luna _thinks_ are chrysanthemums interspersed with babies breath.

Luna lowers her coffee and smiles, “Can I help?”

“Sorry to be a bother,” he says, “A nurse pointed me towards Mrs Ellis’ room but there doesn’t seem to be anyone in there right now?”

“She just went for some treatment down the hall - I can take them to her now if you’d like, I’m sure they’d help cheer her up a little.”

He smiles but when Luna puts her coffee down to take the bouquet he hesitates.

“Could I - can I come see her get them?” he asks, “Seeing their reactions is my favourite part.”

“I can’t let you in the treatment room,” Luna says apologetically.

“No of course,” he sighs, sounding resigned, “Sorry for -”

“But you can certainly watch through the window,” Luna adds quickly because his sad face does _something_ to her, “If you promise not to disturb anyone.”

“Yeah?” he grins - a completely charming quirk of his mouth.

Luna retrieves her coffee to drink while they walk and starts to lead him down the hall.

“Do they mean anything?” she asks, eager to hear more of his voice, “The flowers?” Only after she’s asked does she wonder how much the _delivery man_ will care to know.

“Oh yeah, chrysanthemums in general show optimism and joy and uh, the red and white indicate loyalty and love in particular.”

“And the babies breath is just filler?” she teases.

To her surprise he shakes his head emphatically, “It can be used that way sure but also it’s a general meaning of love too, but also freedom and purity.”

“Oh,” Luna says and she comes to a stop outside the door. She reaches for the bouquet and realises she’ll struggle to take it from him with a cup in hand but he simply smiles and offers -

“Trade?”

He takes her cup with a level of care she’s not expecting, holding it close to his chest as she gets to grips with bouquet. Before she heads into the room she shows him where he can stand unobtrusively to get a good view of Mrs Ellis – and no one else.

Luna means to turn and watch the delivery man when she’s handed it over but she gets entranced herself by the way Mrs Ellis’ eyes light up behind her glasses with joy during a time when she’s usually, understandably, uncomfortable and sad. When she’s finished batting away the praise - Luna doesn’t deserve it after all - and enjoying her patient's happiness she turns to look at the man to see him leaning up against the window with a soft smile on his face.

A nurse steps away from one of the other patients and approaches Mrs Ellis so Luna excuses herself from the room with a soft farewell, knowing how cumbersome these rooms can become with extra bodies in. Besides, its impossible to deny the draw of the man just outside.

“Thanks,” he says as soon as Luna is back, adding quickly, “You should drink that before it gets completely cold. Sorry for keeping you from it.”

“That’s alright,” Luna says, “This was worth it.”

\- - -

It’s another couple weeks before she sees him again.

Luna’s on the way to her car, rushing because she’s late for dinner at her brother’s house - when is she not? - and she catches sight of him being accosted at the side of his own vehicle by a tiny little man who’s hair is still a shocking lick of ginger despite his advancing years.

“She loves peonies,” the old man says while Luna rummages in her handbag for her keys.

“They’re a good choice,” she hears the delivery guy answer, “Plenty in season right now. Why don’t you come down to the shop tomorrow to pick some stuff out.”

He leans against the side of the car, not yet noticing Luna is within ear shot and she notices that it’s a plain black number, oddly sleek to be running deliveries for an independent florist. Luna wouldn’t have pegged it for a delivery vehicle at all were it not for the decals on the two back doors announcing the florist as _Blooming Lovely_ with an address and phone number listed underneath.

“Oh but I need to be here by nine am sharp tomorrow,” the man frets. He’s neither a patient she recognises nor attached to anyone in her rotation from what she can tell.

The delivery man tilts his head and then pulls something from his pocket.

“Give the shop a call tonight then,” he says, “And I can run it over first thing in the morning, it can be here before you are.”

“Oh, wonderful, wonderful,” the man all but cries, like all his dreams have come true.

Luna finally manages to grasp a hold of her keys as the elderly man is making his way back towards the hospital entrance with his cane. As she inserts the key into the door she happens to look up and finds the steel blue eyes of the _Blooming Lovely_ delivery driver staring at her across the distance of the three cars between them.

Luna could stay and chat, could finally ask his name, ask why he works as a delivery person when his jacket is clearly so expensive and he’s at the age where society has normally forced them all career tracks by now.

Sure Luna always _wanted_ to be a doctor, _loves_ being one now but it was a train she boarded when she was about nine with no option to transfer tickets after she hit the meat of her teens.

So Luna _could_ stay and learn some of the facts about this man’s life but in the back of her head she can hear Ravus chiding her for not managing to balance her work and outside expectations better _._ So instead she raises her hand in a small wave as she open the door of her car and he returns the gesture with that disarming half smile of his before turning to his own vehicle.

It’s a strange hope because she doesn’t know him any better than most strangers but she hopes it’s not as long before she sees him again this time.

\- - -

Luna stops for coffee on the way in to work the next day, partly for herself but also because her friend Crowe is pushing towards the last few hours of a truly monstrous shift down in trauma and it’s probably best for the hospital to get the lady some caffeine asap. Crowe doesn’t let Luna bring it down to her floor though, instead using the first break she’s manages to grab late last night to escape briefly up to Luna’s floor.

“You’re a doll,” Crowe tells her before immediately downing pretty much half the coffee in one go.

“If you burn yourself I am not trauma-capable,” Luna teases.

Crowe barks out a laugh, “First: thanks for having my back. Second: that’s bullshit, you could come down there and run circles around us.”

“Emotionally then,” Luna says, “It’d be too much for me.”

“Nah,” Crowe says dismissively, “You can handle inpatient, you can handle the circus down there.”

Maybe she could, Luna thinks, but its not her preference by a long shot. Luna has dreams of working on a different floor but it's not down in trauma with Crowe. Even if the company would be nice.

Crowe sighs when she reaches the end of her coffee, like she’s never been more disappointed by anything in her life.

Luna pats her on the shoulder in commiseration, “You’ll get through it. Always dies down in the morning.”

“Amen to that sister - well hello there handsome.”

Lune flicks her eyes in the same direction as Crowe’s without thinking and sure enough the man she’s been eyeballing for _weeks_ is stepping out of the elevator. He’s less put together than normal, hair sticking out haphazardly from under his hat and as he makes his way down the hallway he yawns, awkwardly hiding it behind one of his hands.

Which essentially mean blocking out his entire face with his armful of deep red blooms.

“You know him,” Crowe says - not asks.

“Sort of,” Luna says, pulling her gaze away reluctantly, “But also not at all.”

Crow arches one of her eyebrows at Luna and says, “I’m sure someone as smart as you knows how to fix that.”

“You presume I want to,” Luna retorts but her rebuff is completely ruined when her attention immediately snaps round at the sound of his voice.

“Hey.”

“Good morning,” Luna says, voice as even as she can.

There’s more of a dark shadow around his jaw than normal, like he didn’t have time to trim his beard this morning and Luna’s thoughts are immediately catapulted to what it would feel like to feel that scruff against her fingers and her neck. Maybe even her thighs.

“People always say that,” he says around another yawn, “But I have never found that to be true even one time in my life.”

Crowe laughs and Luna finds herself smiling.

“Sorry,” he says, “I’m bad with mornings.”

And yet, Luna thinks, here he is working a delivery shift earlier than she’s ever seen him before. Almost like he’s _only_ here to make that man from yesterday happy.

“Where are you heading?” Luna asks him.

“Just here, if that’s okay they’re for -” he reaches into his pocket and digs out a short scrap of paper, crumpled and creased “- Gregor - no that’s his name, duh. Oh. Annalise, I think she just had a baby.”

“Ah,” Luna says, “I know her.” Luna’s largely responsible for her care though it’s the baby, right now, giving them all cause for concern.

As far as Luna knows, however, Annalise has no family and has been largely managing this alone.

“I think they’re estranged,” Noctis says, “She’s his granddaughter. He knows this won’t fix it, but he hopes it’ll help.”

Luna nods and helps him place them safely onto the wide desk.

“They’ll brighten her room, either way,” Luna says kindly.

“Every little helps,” Noctis agrees with a distracting smile.

Crowe clears her throat pointedly. Luna had kind of forgotten she was there.

“I better get back to it,” she says to Luna and then turns to face the delivery guy, “Crowe, by the way. Dr Altius if you manage to cut your finger off or something.”

He laughs and it sounds warm, comforting and honest like he really is still fighting against sleep.

“Noctis - Noct. And I’ll bear that in mind.”

 _Noctis_. Luna thinks. _Noct_.

Crowe elbows her a little more sharply than Luna thinks is necessary and she realises that _Noctis_ is looking at her expectantly.

“Luna,” she blurts, “My name is Luna.”

Noctis smiles, eyes crinkling just a little at the corners.

“I’m glad I finally know that.”

Luna is too.

“Do they - these flowers, do they mean forgiveness or?”

Noct shakes his head, “Not technically but most of the time intent is what really matters.”

\- - -

Luna has considered, many times, going for a fellowship in paediatrics. She loves the children, how they’re so honest about their pain but resilient at the same time.

Luna just fears she wouldn’t be able to take it. A string of bad luck when caring for the already infirm, the elderly, is horrible enough, her heart would simply _break_ for the children.

But she thinks it might be worth it.

She’s headed over to consult with a colleague on strange symptoms Luna’s had in some of her patients alarmingly cropping up in children too and she enjoys the shift in decor, the additions of butterflies and dinosaurs to coloured direction strips, the cartoons plastering the walls.

It’s _always_ noisier down here but today it seems even louder, boisterous giggles drifting down the hall from what sounds like all the children on the floor.

“Dr Fleuret,” her colleague says, grabbing her attention as she starts to drift naturally toward the source of the sound.

“Afternoon Dr Melrose,” Luna says. She steps towards her colleague but glances over her shoulder and asks, “What’s going on?”

Dr Melrose grins and says, “It’s adorable, come see.” And rather than leading Luna off towards her office she starts to take her towards the noise.

“Oh,” Luna says, coming to a halt. Because there is Noctis, handsome, beautiful Noctis stood in the wide hallway with children clamouring around his legs as he hands out beautiful miniature flower crowns perfect for their little heads.

“He does this sometimes,” Melrose tells her, “During the spring festival he donated these huge garlands and popped back in every few days to make sure all the blooms looked perfect the whole time. And Ani was telling me that he’s always delivering arrangements down to hospice - just likes to brighten things up, he says.”

Luna finds her heart beating oddly fast as she watches Noct place a beautiful little crown of white roses on top of a tiny little girl’s head, carefully balancing it on top of the hat she wears to keep her head warm. The little girl smiles, but still seems tearful once more and Noctis smiles gently at her before reaching into his box again.

This time he pulls out a single white rose, perfect to Luna’s eyes and the girl _beams_ so wide she’s sure Noctis could count every single one of her teeth.

“Come on,” Melrose says, “I better show you those scans.”

“Of course.”

And Luna wrenches her eyes away from Noct’s earnest grin and bright eyes to return to her job.

\- - -

Luna had caught sight of Noctis - with armfuls of irises this time – about an hour ago as she hurried across the hospital to answer an emergency page.

Thankfully it had been a false alarm, but even twenty minutes after the fact the adrenaline spike still feels palpable in her veins.

“Here,” Noctis says suddenly and Luna almost jumps clear out of her skin, scattering her patient files across the desk.

“Shit,” he says, “Sorry, I was trying - I bought coffee, I mean. And donuts.”

Luna looks up, abandoning her efforts to straighten her papers again.

Sure enough he’s loading up the nurses station with two of those cardboard carriers full of coffee, each with _six_ inside, and a box containing what must be at least as many donuts.

Instead of saying _thank you_ like a sane person she blurts, “Coffee from where?”

Noctis laughs, “Across the street because, no offence, but the coffee shop downstairs sucks.”

“Yes,” Luna agrees heartily, “It really does.

“But uh - you looked really stressed earlier so I thought I’d try and help,” he explains, stumbling over his words a little,

“Thank you,” Luna manages this time, “That’s very sweet of you.”

“Nah, least I could do. You guys are in here saving lives and I just play with flowers all day,” Noctis laughs.

“How long have you been delivering flowers?” Luna asks as she reaches for one of the coffees at random.

Noctis tilts his head, “Since I bought the shop I guess,” he says, “Sometimes I get help from a college kid during wedding season but I like to do it myself mostly.”

Luna’s frozen with her hand halfway towards the coffees and mistaking the cause of her hesitation Noctis says, “These six are black and these are lattes.”

“You’re the _florist_?” Luna asks.

“Uh, yeah?”

Luna blushes and scoops up one of the lattes to try and hide her face behind the cup.

“Did you just think I was the delivery boy?” Noctis asks.

“Well,” Luna says, “I never used the word _boy_ but, yes, I suppose.”

Noctis grins, “Well I do pretty good business but not enough to staff a delivery man full time _and_ pay him a liveable wage unfortunately.”

Luna’s suddenly fascinated by his hands, covered in small nicks and callouses, as she imagines them carefully arranging vibrant blooms in a vase or delicately twisting stems into wire circles to make dress-up crowns for little girls.

The title of _florist_ seems in such juxtaposition to his slouchy sweaters and frayed jeans. Even his boots seem like they’d be more fitting almost _anywhere_ else other than the quaint little flower shop she’d pictured in her mind.

Next time she has more than an hour of free time she’ll _have_ to take a trip into town and see it for herself.

They both open their mouths to speak at the same time but Noctis suddenly frowns and sighs, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a vibrating phone.

“This is the shop re-direct so I gotta -”

“It’s fine, thank you for this,” Luna assures him, gesturing at his delivery.

“Give them out for me, yeah?” Noct asks her and then he’s pressing the phone to his ear and saying, “Blooming Lovely, how can I help?”

Noctis turns to leave and Luna lets herself admire the shape of his his back - broad shoulders tapering off nicely into narrow hips and firm thighs.

Next time she talks to him she _has_ to ask him about the name of his shop. Noctis doesn’t strike her as the sort to abide by puns.

\- - -

Reliably Luna can expect to see Noctis in or around the hospital at least once a week. She suspects he’s there almost every day seeing as he’s a favourite among staff and patients alike. Whenever a visitor asks where they can get some flowers the nurses dig out one of his business cards from the stack they keep at their stations.

Last week she saw him a grand total of four times and Luna stopped for as long as she could each time talking to him about anything and everything she could think of. He’s born and raised in the city she learns, unlike her who had transferred halfway across the planet for med-school and then set down roots once and for all when Ravus had landed a job here as a top-dog CFO in his dream company.

It had taken some _reorganising_ , Ravus told her, for him to have the company the way he likes it but he's quite proud of himself.

Her and Ravus haven’t _always_ seen eye to eye but it’s important for her to keep what family she has left close.

Something about Noctis' last name means something to her, like she’s heard it before but no matter how hard she racks her memory she can’t work out what it is or where it's from.

If it was bad, she thinks, she’d remember.

Noctis _had_ gone to school she learns, doing the first half of a political science degree before calling it quits. When Luna had asked _why_ he'd stopped Noctis had changed the subject somewhat abruptly and Luna’s good enough with people to know when not to push.

Luna might sometimes second guesses her _actual_ skill as a doctor but she knows her bedside manner is faultless.

Instead she’d asked about friends and Noctis talked readily and openly about the few he has, two of whom he’s known since he was a _baby_ and Luna is sad when she’s paged to take a phone call then and has to leave. She thinks she could stare at the face he makes when he’s content and animated until the day she dies.

Or she’s getting ahead of herself about a man she barely knows.

One of the two.

\- - -

“How’s lover boy?” Crowe asks reaching across into Luna’s bowl and snatching one a piece of her broccoli.

They’ve been gifted with one of their rare nights off together where neither of them are on call and no one in their families is expecting a visit either.

They could have gotten dressed up and gone out into the night, dancing and drinking, trying to meet men - or women if Crowe fancies - but instead they’re collapsed together on Luna’s couch with their bare feet kicked up onto her coffee table and an already half empty bottle of wine between them.

“If you want broccoli order it,” Luna enthuses, playfully snapping her chopsticks at Crowe when she tries for a second piece, “And he’s not _my_ lover boy.”

Luna can’t work up the nerve to ask for his number for some reason. Maybe it’s the fact she’s so busy and all her previous relationships have fizzled when they realised they would have to, occasionally, be prioritised below the lives of strangers? Maybe it’s the fact that whenever they’re mid conversation and she thinks that maybe _yes_ now is the moment she could do it she glances down and sees some gross stain or another on her scrubs or she’ll catch her reflection and be reminded that she probably should have washed her hair _yesterday_. If only she wasn't so tired.

“They put way too much in,” Crowe points out, digging through her own noodles for something she finds more palatable.

Luna tries to focus on the trash television show they have running on her flat-screen but Crowe is suddenly pressing her _ice cold_ wine glass against the side of Luna’s face. Luna _yelps_ and almost slops her noodles onto her lap when she jumps. Which would have been a waste of good food _and_ her favourite jeans.

“So do something about it,” Crowe demands.

Luna licks some teriyaki sauce off her thumb and mumbles, “About what?”

“Lover boy not being your lover boy.”

Luna snorts, “I’m too busy for all that.”

“The dude is a _florist_ ,” Crowe enthuses, “That has to be like the most flexible of schedules in the world.”

“I can’t expect someone to rearrange their life for me,” Luna says and even she can pick out the bitterness in her tone.

“But you think its okay when they expect as much of you?” Crowe demands.

Luna deflates against the couch.

“At least get his number,” Crowe says more gently, “Maybe it goes nowhere or whatever. But maybe it goes exactly to wherever it needs to so that beautiful man can bend you over a desk or something.”

“Crowe!” Luna cries indignantly but she’s laughing.

“Like you haven’t thought about it,” Crowe teases.

Luna eats another mouthful of noodles before admitting, “I’ve thought about it a lot.”

\- - -

“I ran out of pure white roses,” Noctis is telling her patient’s grandson, “But I had these pink tipped ones that I think compliment the daisies even better.”

Luna silently agrees from where she’s totally not lurking.

When the grandson is gone Noctis turns right to her like he'd known she was lurking there the whole time.

He shouldn’t look so good with a snapback turned backwards on his head and an obvious smudge of dirt across his thigh but he really, really does.

Without words Noctis raises his hand and shows her the single lavender coloured rose held between his fingers.

“Oh,” Luna says without thinking, “Did that fall out of the bouquet? Should I take it in for you?” Though even with her complete lack of floristry skills she can tell it just wouldn't go at all.

Noctis smiles and as always Luna enjoys the way it pulls up one side of his mouth and warms his eyes.

“Nah,” he says almost lazily, pushing the bloom towards her, “This one’s for you.”

“For me?” Luna asks quietly.

Noctis nods and when he drops the flower into her palm he shifts his hands to trail fingertips across the back of her hand before he pulls back.

Luna’s a woman of science so she knows they’re not _actually_ an electric current passing between the place where their skin touches, but it certainly feels like it.

“What does it mean?” she breathes.

Noct’s smile broadens, “Why don’t you look it up and if you like what you find you can drop me a call or a text? Whatever works best for you.”

Luna takes the business card he hands her thumb tracing over the marks where he’s scribbled out the shop's information and penned in a cell phone number in it's place.

“Okay,” Luna agrees.

-

 _Mystical love and enchantment_ , says one website.

 _Love at first sight_ , says another.

Luna sets the rose carefully in a glass of water and adds Noctis’ number to her phone.

\- - -

Luna marvels at the strength of the little girl in the bed, her mother has cried more than she has and she’s not the one that had been hit by a car that morning.

“Three breaks?” the father winces.

Luna glances at Dr Melrose and her colleague steps to one side, beckoning the parents away with her. Luna pulls up the little plastic chair beside the girl’s bed and settles into it.

“I’m not going to run in the school relay any more am I?” she asks sadly.

“Not this year,” Luna says honestly, “But if everything goes to plan you’ll be able to run as much as you sooner than you’d think.”

The little girls sniffs, eyes damp but tears not spilling over.

“S’not fair,” she mumbles.

“No,” Luna agrees offering the little girl her hand and giving it a gentle squeeze when it’s in her hold, “It’s not fair.”

-

Dr Melrose catches her on the way out of the bathroom and stops her with a gentle hand on her arm.

“Have you thought more about the paediatrics fellowship?” Melrose asks, “I know me and everyone in the department will give you our full support.”

“I _have_ thought about it,” Luna admits. There’s few things she’s ever thought about more.

“And?”

Still, Luna hesitates.

“You can handle the work,” Melrose says, “And you’re so wonderful with the kids.”

“Send me the information,” Luna says, “And I’ll look it over this weekend.”

Melrose beams.

“No promises,” Luna laughs.

“You’re going to look _amazing_ in purple scrubs.”

\- - -

“Sorry!” Luna says earnestly as she rushes over to where Noctis is waiting for her, leaning against the side of his car.

She’s late and she absolutely _loathes_ being late.

He’s dressed nicer than normal in clean dark jeans and a tight nit sweater with a stylish black coat over the top. It’s one of the few times she’s ever seen him without a hat on and she’s struck by how soft his hair looks.

Luna tried her best but she had to get ready in the hospital staffroom knowing damn well that if shit hits the fan this evening she’ll be right back here before they’re even done with their dinner. Noct had promised her she didn’t have to dress _fancy_ though and she’s honestly relieved, no single part of her is prepared for the pomp and circumstance of a meal in one of the overly fancy restaurants her brother prefers.

Maybe she _should have_ waited for a night where she wasn’t on call but she really just couldn't wait even a day longer. Not when she knew that her infatuation was returned and all her bubbling burning questions and desires might soon get answers.

“Don’t worry about it,” Noctis tells her easily. When she’s close enough he catches her hand and pulls it up to press a kiss against her knuckles. When he lowers it again he presses a bouquet of white daisies into her palm that she hadn’t noticed before.

“Hi,” she says shyly, lifting the flowers to her nose and inhaling their sweet scent, “Thank you.”

“How was your day?” Noct asks sweetly.

“Long,” Luna admits, “And might be longer.”

Noct just steps away from the car with another smile and opens up the passenger door for her, holding her hand until she’s settled comfortably in the seat.

It’s _not_ the same car he uses when he delivers flowers but it’s very similar - Luna’s not exactly in the know with these kind of things but she’s pretty sure the only difference is that this one doesn’t have the _Blooming Lovely_ decals.

“How did you name your business?” Luna asks when Noct settled in his own seat.

Noctis laughs in obvious surprise and then sighs.

“My friends’ named it for me - I lost a bet.”

“You’re joking?” she laughs.

“Not even a little,” Noctis assures her, “And they _love_ puns - it’s how their marriage works see - so of course they chose what they did.”

Luna giggles, “What was the bet?”

“That’s the worst bit, I don’t even remember,” Noctis says laughing again.

“I didn’t realise two of your friends were married?” Luna presses.

Noct nods and she’s taken in by how hopelessly _fond_ he looks.

“I watched Prom pine over Iggy all throughout high school so when they _finally_ got married a few years ago it was honestly a relief to know the pining was behind us.”

Luna recognises the names from times when Noctis has talked about his friends before. He has another named Gladio but knows little more about him than that.

“Surely the pining must have ended _before_ they got married? For a marriage to take place?”

Noctis shakes his head, “You’d think that but no.”

Noctis turns the car off the main rad and down an unfamiliar street and when he’s finished changing gear he reaches over to brush her hair back over her shoulder without taking his eyes off the road.

“I’ve never really seen your hair down before,” Noct tells her, “It’s really beautiful.”

“Where are we going?” Luna asks to cover up her joy at the simple compliment delivered so matter of fact. Its hard to tell in the dim light of the car but Luna thinks Noctis might be blushing too.

“Uh, so when you said you’d just want to relax I could only think of one place and now I’m thinking that it might be a dumb idea,” Noct explains.

The car stops then and Luna looks out of the car window eagerly, across the road from them is a restaurant that looks like a charming cross between a bistro and a cute retro diner.

“They have _the best_ comfort food but if you want to go somewhere else -”

Luna pushes open her car door.

Noct jumps out too and by the time she’s climbed out he’s raced around the car to take her hand. They hurry across the road during the first break in traffic and Noctis pulls the door open, holding it so she can step in ahead of him.

“You come here a lot?” Luna asks.

“Less so now,” Noctis answers, “But when I was a kid I’d come for breakfast on Sundays with my dad and then me and Prompto would -” Noctis suddenly cuts off.

“What is it?” Luna questions.

“I’m so sorry,” Noct says to her and then he turns slightly and says to someone else, “Why are you here? You don’t work Thursdays.”

A blond around their age grins at them, even dropping Luna a quick wink. With the back of a pen he pushes some glasses further up his nose and tells Noct, “Someone’s out sick and I can always use the extra cash. So. Who’s your friend?” he flutters his eyelashes playfully.

“Great,” Noct grumbles. To Luna he suggests, “Maybe we _should_ go somewhere else.”

“No, no,” the blond says and Luna’s smart enough to realise this must be one of Noct’s friends but is without context clues to work out which one.

“I’ll be good!” They say, “I’ll even get Tess to cover your table if you want - but I can totally squeeze you a booth even though there’s only two of you.”

“I wouldn’t want to get you in trouble,” Luna says quickly.

“Nah,” he says, waving her concern away, “Prompto, by the way, since Sir Naptis doesn’t seem to want to introduce us.”

Noct splutters and Luna giggles, “Luna,” she says, placing her hand in his when he offers.

Prompto bows over it, “Charmed.”

“Alright, alright,” Noctis says and though he sounds annoyed his face is anything but, “Get us to a booth before I tell your husband you’ve been flirting again.”

Prompto sticks out his tongue but quickly grabs two menus and turns on his heel to lead the way through the diner.

“Sorry,” Noct mutters again, “I really didn’t think he’d be here.”

“That’s alright,” Luna assures him, “I think he’s sweet.”

“That’s half the problem,” Noctis mutters playfully.

Prompto seats them in a comfortable clean looking booth, outfitted with soft red fabric that Luna sinks into with a silent breath of relief. They’re tucked in a quieter part of the diner away from where a few families are eating. Prompto deposits their menus down and then pulls an order pad and pen from the front of his apron.

“Usual beer?” Prompto asks.

Noct shakes his head, “Driving.” Prompto nods and writes something else down without Noct having to order anything. Luna wonders what it would be like to have friends that know you that well.

Though, Crowe probably _could_ order for her at a bar without instructions. So there’s that.

“And you? Luna?” Prompto says, “Beer and wine is on the back of the menu.”

“Oh - no I’m on call actually so it’ll just have to be water tonight.”

Prompto snaps his fingers, “Right! Noct told me you were a doctor.”

Noctis clears his throat and Prompto pales slightly.

“Ha! I’ll leave you to look at the menu while I get your drinks,” Prompto says and then turnabouts and trots away.

“So you’ve been talking about me,” Luna teases.

Noctis half rolls his eyes and when his hand appears palm up on the table Luna doesn’t even think about it before her hand is sliding over the top of it.

“Of course I have,” Noctis says, “Gladio thought I was dumb, for going after someone so out of my league.”

Luna feels her cheeks flush, “I wouldn’t say that. You’re a business owner after all.”

Noct shrugs with just one of his shoulders, “ _Technically_ the business is in Iggy’s name.”

“But I thought you - you said you bought the business,” Luna says carefully keeping accusation out of her tone.

“I did,” Noct assures her, “But I don’t care about the business stuff and Ignis is a business _genius_ so he handles all that stuff for me. My money, but he handles it.”

“You must trust him very much,” Luna says quietly.

“With my life,” Noct says simply.

Noct opens his menu and Luna follows suit, surprised when Noctis immediately closes it again.

“I know that thing back to front,” Noctis laughs pushing it to one side. Eagerly he leans forward so he can peer down at Luna’s upside down, “What do you like?”

“Oh I’m not fussy,” Luna says reassuringly.

“That's not what I asked. What do you _like_?”

Luna thinks on it for a long moment and then says, “I don’t suppose they have pasta?”

Noctis grins and lets go of her hand so he can turn the middle leaf of her menu to an entire spread of pasta dishes.

“Iggy swears by the ratatouille bake thing but if you want _real_ comfort you gotta have the special mac and cheese.”

“What’s so special bout it?” Luna asks even while trying to think back to the last time she had macaroni cheese that didn’t come out of a box.

“Well -” Noct hedges, “I don’t actually know,” Luna breaks into a peal of laughter, “But it’s really good I promise.”

Still laughing Luna reaches for his hand on the table again and closes her menu with the other.

“Perhaps the ratatouille next time,” Luna tells him.

Noct squeezes her fingers.

-

They head out of the restaurant back towards Noctis’ car and as they step out into the wind Noctis wraps his arms around her to stave off the chill.

“Has Prompto worked there long?” Luna wonders aloud.

“Like twelve years,” Noct says and then seems to _scramble_ to go on, “It’s not the only thing he does though. He wants to be a photographer but it’s not always steady income.”

“It’s commendable that he’s stuck to his passion for so long,” Luna says. Many of the artistically inclined kids she grew up with abandoned their dreams before she was out of med-school, transferring to business or finance and not even picking up their tools in their free time.

It makes her feel sad.

“Stubborn is what he is,” Noctis argues, “Iggy earns more than enough for the two of them, he’s just obsessed with paying his half.”

Luna thinks she can understand that desire though she’s always been well provided for, Ravus might have technically inherited everything when their parents died but he’s always divided it in a way that has allows for her independence without concern.

But Luna also thinks this is an argument that might be as old as their very friendship so she realises she has no right to weigh in.

When they reach the car Noct reaches for the handle to open her side but Luna steps in the way to block him.

“Hi,” she says coyly, “I had a really nice time.”

Noctis steps into her space and Luna feels deliciously trapped between the heat of his body and the cool metal of his car.

“Me too,” Noctis says, “Thanks for following up on my dumb flower.”

Luna laughs softly and tilts her head up, looking up at him from beneath her eyelashes as he leans in.

Noctis brushes their mouths together feather soft at first, inhaling sharply through his nose when Luna presses up even further into his space and opens her mouth to the pressure of his own.

His hand comes up to cup her face, trailing back to tangle in the length of her hair.

Luna sighs as they pull apart and Noct drops one last chaste kiss to the corner of her mouth.

“You going back to the hospital?”

Luna nods, stroking her hands up his biceps, “Easier to sleep there when I’m on call than to high-tail it across the city at three am.”

Noctis chuckles, “Well for what it’s worth I hope you get a full nights sleep.”

He leans in again and just as their mouths brush once more her cell phone starts blaring angrily from inside her handbag.

“I shouldn’t have said anything,” Noctis teases.

\- - -

“You haven’t said _thank you, Crowe_ yet.”

Luna tears free a piece of her dinner roll and flicks it across the plastic table towards Crowe’s face. It flies wide, which is probably good for Luna’s physical well being.

\- - -

“You’re awfully distracted tonight?” Ravus complains lightly as he pours more sparkling water into her glass.

“Sorry,” Luna says shaking her head a little, “There’s a lot on my mind.”

Noctis, she thinks, Noctis is on her mind.

“What were you saying?” Luna prods as sweetly as she can.

“Just about how I’m _constantly_ battling against one of the business advisers and his damn charitable tendencies - we’re a business first and foremost. Profit should be the focus. I thought we’d rid ourselves of all these ridiculous notions when we managed to foist the founders son off the board but alas. He still has his supporters.”

“Well it wouldn’t do for the company to stretch beyond it’s means,” Luna says neutrally.

“It’s well within our means,” Ravus laughs, “I just don’t see why we _should_.”

Luna’s fork clinks loudly against her plate, “Forgive me, I must not understand.”

Because it sounds like Ravus is blocking the charitable endeavours of his company despite those endeavours not affecting their bottom line. She understands that _finances_ are his responsibility but -

“While I’m not opposed to helping those in _dire_ need,” Ravus explains, “If we continuously give hand outs like we do right now how will people really ever learn to take care of themselves?”

“Indeed,” Luna says icily. Only one hour left. And then she’s free for another week.

Ravus isn’t always _this_ awful and Luna wonders if there’s more at play here than simple business decisions. Even if that doesn’t make it okay.

Luna sighs and Ravus tuts.

“If you’re this distracted _now_ is it really such a good idea for you to be considering this paediatric fellowship? You’ll only be making your work load worse.”

Luna thinks it’s a fantastic idea actually and she’s glad she’s no longer a meek little girl easily kowtowed by her brother’s words.

“I’m quite decided,” Luna says.

\- - -

Noct takes her for dinner again a few days later but this time he drives – see: speeds - them down to the waterfront and they walk along the Pier sharing a double order of fish and chips while he peppers her with questions about growing up in Tenebrae.

“It’s so green right? Like even your cities are just _green_.”

“Yes,” Luna laughs, “Lots of plants and parks and natural spaces.”

“I bet that’s amazing,” Noct sighs.

Luna laughs at his dreamy expression and he looks away embarrassed.

“I like plants,” he mumbles.

“I never would have guessed,” Luna teases and she awkwardly goes up on her tiptoes and leans around the food to kiss his cheek. He looks appeased.

“I have to ask,” Luna asks a short while later when they’ve tossed their trash away and are just strolling hand in hand, “How can you afford to do all that stuff at the hospital - the flower crowns and the garlands and don’t think I haven’t noticed there’s always a bouquet at the nurses station on my floor.”

Noct smiles and ducks down to kiss her temple, “I get by.”

“But - surely you want to do more than that,” Luna says.

Noct shakes his head, “If I break even after all my overheads - which I do - then I’m good. Happy. I don’t need anything more than that.”

This doesn’t seem like a particularly smart way to run a business but Luna can’t really complain when there’s nothing inherently wrong with it.

Also she _likes_ it.

Noctis is such a juxtaposition of a person.

“I just like making the bouquets and stuff, making people happy,” Noctis goes on, “I really don’t want to do any of that other stuff.”

“You do, you know, make lots of people happy.”

Noctis turns his face away slightly to hide his smile.

-

Luna has work in the morning.

Luna has work _early_ in the morning.

But Noctis slides his warm hands beneath her coat to feel along her sides and she contemplates throwing all caution to the wind and inviting him upstairs to her apartment.

It’s Luna’s fault they’re pressed up against the main door as they are, brazenly visible to the entire world passing by. Noctis had lent down to kiss her goodnight and she’d been able to _tell_ it was supposed to be a chaste barely there affair but she’d latched on tight to his arms and refused to let go.

Noct shifts _even_ closer, his thigh slotting between her own and Luna can’t even hope to suppress the moan that builds in the back of her throat.

He pulls away but trails a string of kisses from the corner of her mouth to her jaw and Luna manages not to feel _too_ bereft.

 _Screw it_ , she thinks.

“Do you want to come up?”

Noct chuckles, the sound low and almost _dirty_ so close to her ear.

“Better not,” Noct says. He leans back fully to get a look at her face and tenderly smooths some of her hair back off her face, “You have people’s lives in your hands tomorrow and I’d feel guilty sending you into work that tired.”

“Confident are you?” Luna teases. She hooks a finger around one of his belt loops and tugs playfully.

“More _hopeful_ ,” Noct corrects, “Those daisies still stand.”

\- - -

Luna doesn’t manage to see Noctis for a whole week after that but he adorably leaves little texts on her phone and one time when she comes out of a gruelling ordeal there’s a coffee waiting for her with a small bunch of forget-me-nots and pink camellias.

The forget-me-nots are pretty self explanatory and Luna pulls out her phone while she’s drinking her coffee - shot of vanilla syrup just how she likes it – and it tells her the camellias indicate _longing_.

Luna quickly texts him to thank him for the delivery and to let him know that she’s right there with him.

\- - -

“Please tell me you’re free tonight,” Luna says with no preamble a few more days after that.

The beat of silence on the other end of the phone is extremely telling.

“ _I can rearrange_ ,” Noctis says.

Luna sighs, “No. Don’t do that. I just -”

“ _You get lunch right_?”

“Of course.”

“ _I have a delivery a few floors down from you at twelve, can you get away?_ ” Noct asks her.

“I can make that work,” Luna promises.

-

“I bought sandwiches,” Noctis says before Luna can say anything. He jumps up off the bench and drops a kiss to her cheek.

Sure enough he’s holding a brown paper bag in one hand with the name of a deli from across the way printed on it. More importantly he has a two cup tray of coffee with a tiny bouquet tucked between them - a single white orchid surrounded by red carnations all bound together with ivy.

Luna plucks it from between the cups and turns it over in her hand.

“What does this one mean?” Luna asks. It smells particularly sweet, the orchid has an enticing citrus scent she’s never quite smelt on a flower before.

“Can’t you guess?” Noctis retorts.

Luna ducks her head, finger tracing over the curve of a petal thinking back to the last week where text messages and phone calls had been their mode of conversation, the one meagre touch of his hand on her back as they passed each other in a hallway a few days prior.

“I miss you too,” Luna says and Noctis kisses her cheek again.

-

They can’t go far so they walk to a local park, huddle on a bench to eat and then go for a walk until Luna has to return to the hospital.

“Did you always want to be a florist?” Luna asks.

She wouldn’t necessarily have asked _right now_ were it not for the fact that Noctis had stopped at a little copse of short shrubs, utterly enchanted by the tiny buds of violet flowers trying burst free despite the chill.

Luna finds that she is utterly enchanted by _him_.

“Did you always want to be a doctor?” Noct asks back.

“Well, yes, actually.”

“Oh. Huh,” Noct says. He snaps a picture of the little buds with his phone then straightens up, catching her hands between his and chaffing them to try and bring some warmth to her frigid fingertips.

“Noct,” Luna pushes. She’s been pretty relaxed generally about letting him pick and chose what he talks about but if they’re ever going to get anywhere - and she hopes they do - he’ll have to start opening up at least a little.

“No,” Noctis says, “Not always. I told you about going to school for poli-sci? Well this came after that – after that wasn’t an option any more.”

“What were you going to do with your degree if you completed it?”

Noct blows warm air over her hands frowning a little. After a long moment he says, “My Dad ran this really huge business and he had a whole department set aside doing charitable work towards social change. That. I wanted to manage that. That was our plan.”

“That sounds wonderful,” Luna says gently. She notes the past tense in his words and realises that’s enough for today. Pulling her hands free she instead wraps her arms around his shoulders and pulls him down for a kiss.

Luna can still taste his coffee on his tongue - cut through with chocolate - and this seems like a pretty good way to wile away the rest of her lunch break.

\- - -

[Luna 17:45] Unexpectedly free this evening if you’re available?

[Noctis 17:46] plans with your brother fall through?

[Luna 17:48] He’s the one that can’t get away from work for dinner for a change.

[Noctis 17:49] guess I better pick up the slack ;)

[Luna 17:50] You read my mind.

[Noctis 17:51] Option 1: I get us reservations at that fancy Altissian place in forest square, we get all fancied up and drink so much wine we have to get a taxi home.

[Noctis 17:52] Option 2: I grab your favourite take-out, meet you at yours and you can show me that Tenebraean film about painters you keep telling me about.

There’s really no decision to be made.

[Luna 17:53] Option 2 please x

[Noctis 17:54] Got a couple things to set up for tomorrow so I’ll be over around eight ??

[Luna 17:55] I can’t wait <3

-

The blessed thing about getting free from the hospital on time, for a change, and knowing that she’s not expected in _at all_ tomorrow means that Luna manages to work up not only the energy to wash her hair in the shower but also shave her legs for the first time in a long while. Luna doesn’t normally worry about that kind of thing but Noctis is going to be _here_ in her apartment for the first time and she has a certain number of things she suspects _might_ happen if Noctis is amenable to her ideas.

Luna has no _expectations_.

But she does change her bedding.

-

Luna would probably have a better time getting Noctis out of his coat if she could stop kissing him.

Noct laughs against her mouth.

“Hi,” he mumbles.

Luna just kisses him more.

Noctis humours her, warm hands stroking firmly up her spine in a way that makes her shiver.

“Foods getting cold,” he tries again after a _long long_ minute.

“I have a microwave,” Luna argues.

Laughing Noctis sweeps the legs out from under her, catching her with one arm around her back and hooking the other under her knees as she squeals with laughter.

“Which way?” Noct asks her.

Luna, still laughing, points in the way of her living space - open plan lounge, kitchen and dining room - and Noct carries her through into it before unceremoniously dumping her onto the couch.

“Stay there,” he warns playfully and slips off to grab the food he’d had to hastily put down by the front door.

Luna would be a little miffed but Noctis is back shortly with her favourite dumplings and he really does let her put on the _Tenebraean painter movie_ she’s been asking him to watch since their very first date.

Well.

He watches _most_ of it because as much as Luna loves the movie she’s seen it a dozen or so times and swinging her leg over one of Noct’s and slowly making her way up and into his lap ends up being much more entertaining.

Noctis maps his hands from her waist to her thighs and then back up again, abandoning one hand on her backside to cup the curve of her ass through the soft fabric of her skirt.

Luna sneaks her hands under Noctis t-shirt and he obligingly shifts forward to let her pull it up, kissing down the length of her jaw until he’s forced away from her by his own clothes pulling up over his face.

Noct’s hands slip up under her skirt then, _just_ rough fingertips trailing up the outside of her thighs. They press against her flesh through the sheer lace of her underwear and Luna’s fingers work at loosening his belt.

“You’ll have to tell me how the movie ends,” Noct murmurs into her collarbone.

Noct’s teeth close gently over her nipple through her dress and Luna retaliates by pressing her hand firmly against the hardness straining between his legs.

“I’ll write you bullet points,” Luna gasps.

-

Noct had told her long ago that he wasn’t a morning person so it doesn’t surprise her at all when she wakes just after nine the next morning with his arm a dead weight over her waist and Noctis blissfully sleeping beside her. He barely reacts when she slips free, simply grumbling slightly under his breath and rolling over so the broad, beautiful expanse of his back is displayed to her.

Luna presses a kiss between his shoulder blades and sneaks quietly from the room. Padding into her living room still nude she makes her way over to where they’d discarded the bulk of their clothes last night, bypassing her own dress and instead scooping up Noct’s dark t-shirt and pulling it on over her head.

Luna _can_ cook but she’s not the best so she preps eggs to make omelets, grates some cheese, dices some veggies - for her - and cubes up some ham before setting it all in the refrigerator for whenever Noctis makes his way out of bed.

Luna sits herself down at her small desk and slides her fellowship application out of its envelope. One last read through before she hands it in later today.

Just one last check…

“Mornin’” Noct mumbles sleepily making Luna jump slightly. His hands come down on her shoulder to rub softly at her shoulders, thumbs digging in at the base of her neck. Luna groans softly.

“Good morning,” Luna says back breathlessly.

Noct stoops to kiss the top of her head.

“What are you working on?” he asks.

“I thought you’d be asleep longer,” Luna mumbles, lulled by the glorious pressure on her shoulders.

“Got cold without you and then someone stole my clothes,” Noct teases, “What’s all this? Looks important.”

“It is,” Luna says, “I’m going for a paediatric fellowship at the hospital -”

“Wow. Luna, that’s _amazing_.”

“You - you think so?” Luna asks. She twists around in her chair to blink up at him only to be confronted by him smiling down at her, sleepy but obviously proud.

“Of course I do,” Noct promises, “You’ll be amazing.”

He bends down then to kiss her firmly on the mouth, hand cradling the back of her head gently.

“Thank you,” she breathes when he seems to have his fill.

Noct kisses her nose.

“Can I take you out for breakfast?” Noct asks.

“I thought I’d cook,” Luna says, “But you’re more than welcome to help.”

Noct coughs awkwardly, “I can make the coffee? I’m a bad cook. Like, burn a salad bad.”

Luna giggles, “Coffee it is.”

In the kitchen though he gets distracted by her vase of flowers, overflowing with gifts from him. Frowning he spins it around once and then starts to pluck stems from within the bundle.

Luna clears her throat, “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Uh,” Noctis turns with a wilting rose in his hand, “These ones are going over.”

“But they’re not done yet are they?”

“Well, no - but,” Noct laughs, “Luna, it’ll look better when they’re gone.”

“No,” she says.

“No?”

“ _No_.”

Sighing in defeat Noctis returns the flower to the vase and simply spends a few moments rearranging the them so - Luna’s not too proud to admit - they’re more attractively organised.

“I guess I’ll just have to replace them,” Noctis murmurs.

Luna rolls her eyes but she’s secretly pleased. It’s been a while since he gave her a full bouquet - though she thinks she might actually prefer the single stems and the accompanying joy of looking up when he means and discovering his intent.

“What time do you need to head to work?” Luna asks as she starts to heat up the pan.

Noct shrugs, “Whenever. I have some stuff to finish off before dropping it off at the hospital but nothing pressing unless I get a rush order.”

He pulls his phone from the pocket of his jeans then - belt open and hanging from the loops - but must see nothing interesting because he slips it back in almost straight away. After setting her coffee machine to brew he pads over, wrapping his arms around her from behind. He presses his face into the curve of her neck.

“Is it a patient on my floor?” Luna asks, “That you’re delivering flower to?”

“Hmm?” he says against her skin, “Nah, I’m just dropping some stuff to the long stay ward - hospice and stuff.”

“Noct? Why do you do it?”

“I just - want to make peoples lives a little brighter,” he said. Luna wants to push because he’s clearly not telling her the whole truth but it feels so personal she daren’t. Not if he’s not ready.

“And also,” he says.

“Yes?”

Noctis swallows and shifts so his chin is hooked over her shoulder, “My dad was in the hospital for a really long time - before he died.”

“I’m sorry,” Luna says on reflex and then winces.

Noct kisses her cheek gently.

“It’s okay - well. It’s not, but you know what I mean.”

Luna nods.

“So you give them flowers because how they cared for him? Or?”

“That,” Noct agrees, “But also I remember how _awful_ it was there. Cold and impersonal. So I decorated the shit out of it so he at least had something the times I couldn’t be there.”

“That’s why you dropped out of school,” Luna suddenly realises.

Luna turns off the burner and twists in his arms, reaching up to place hers over his shoulders.

“Yeah and I could have just taken a break but I was _supposed_ to take over the company after - you know. Not that _that_ panned out.”

Luna frowns and something starts to dawn on her, a sick twisting in the pit of her stomach, burning hot and icy cold all at once as she fills with dread.

“Why - why didn’t you take over?”

Noct huffs a little, frustrated by the memory, “They tried to make me chose. Dad wasn’t fit to run the company after a while so they said I had to take over. Like right then, _immediately_. They forced me to chose between taking care of my father or the company he’d built from the ground up.”

Noct closes his eyes as the memory gets too painful.

Luna thinks she might be sick.

Ravus. Ravus was involved somehow.

He works for the _Caelum Corporation_.

And hadn't he bragged a few years ago about rearranging upper management? Isn't he always complaining them being _too charitable_.

Ravus did this - _her brother_ did this to a man that’s becoming so, so dear to her.

“It wasn’t really a choice, you know, though Dad was never aware enough to let me know if he agreed or not,” Noct mutters, “And Iggy’s still there, fighting for everything dad believed in. And they still _pay_ me of course, a ridiculous amount of money to keep quite, essentially.”

Noct opens his eyes and his face shifts from anger to concern as he takes in her expression.

“It’s alright, Luna,” he says reassuringly, “I’m alright - yeah, I wish it had gone differently -”

“It was my brother,” Luna blurts.

“What was – oh.”

Noctis stares at her like he's never _quite_ seen her before.

“Doctor Fleuret - _Nox_ Fleuret. I didn’t -”

Noct steps back out of her hold and Luna whole body feels chilled all at once.

“Noct -”

“I need to go,” he says,

“Noctis -”

Noct holds up his hand when Luna makes to step forward and she stops.

“I know you didn’t - I just,” he sighs, “I’m sorry.”

Stepping around her he marches out of the living room and towards the front door.

Luna can’t move for a moment but when she hears the jingle of keys she’s suddenly moving, racing towards the front door.

“Noct,” she calls, rounding the doorways, “Your clothes - at least…” But he’s already buttoning his jacket up over his bare torso.

As he steps through the door he casts one last look back at her, hurt and confused before snapping it closed behind him with a decisive snap.

Luna sinks to the floor right where she stands.

\- - -

Three days later Luna almost bounces right off of Prompto as she steps out of the hospital’s main entrance. She manages to avoid him which is good because he’s carefully balancing what must be at least three full bouquets in his arms.

They freeze, staring at each other and Prompto exhales long and slow.

“Hi,” he offers.

“Hi,” Luna says back meekly.

“How are you doing?” Prompto asks gently, face surprisingly sincere.

Luna shakes her head, “You don’t have to pretend not to hate me.”

“I don’t hate you,” Prompto says immediately, “And neither does Noct. It’s just -”

“My brother helped screw him out of his father’s entire life’s work?”

Prompto winces, “Kinda.”

Luna sighs, “Is he okay?”

“Yeah - he just tries not to think about what happened because it ruins what good memories he _does_ have, you know.”

Luna nods, “Yes. I’m sure being with such a stark reminder of that would be difficult.” Luna’s not surprised by how bitter her voice sounds, nor can she bring herself to care much.

“He’s really not mad at you,” Prompto says. He adjusts the flowers in his hold and Luna feels bad for keeping him when they must be so heavy.

“He just needs some time to process. Do you think - if in a week or two or a _month_ he realises you make him feel better than the hurt - will you be there to, you know, take his call?”

“Of course,” Luna says immediately, “He can take as long as he needs.”

Luna can’t imagine how it would feel if he were to call her now, not when she’d banished all hope of such a thing from ever happening.

Would he weight of Ravus not always be too big and painful between them?

Prompto smiles, “Cool. Thanks.”

Luna shakes her head and when Prompto readjusts the flowers again she steps forward and lifts one of them free from his hold.

“Where are you heading?”

“Aren’t you on your break?” Prompto asks.

Luna just shakes her head, “I was going for a walk but I think this would please me more.”

Prompto _beams_. “There’s a list, uh - _here_.”

Luna finds the paper clutched between two of his fingers and plucks it from grasp.

“If you’ll follow me?”

\- - -

“ _Lunafreya. I don’t know why you’re not answering my calls but I expect you at my house at seven pm_ sharp _tonight. I expect news of your fellowship. Goodbye._ ”

Luna presses the button to delete the message and startles when Dr Melrose touches her arm.

“Are you ready?”

Luna takes a deep breath and adjust the hem of her short jacket.

“Do I look ready?” she asks with a smile. It feels weird to be in the hospital not dressed in scrubs.

“You look great,” Melrose promises, “Come on.”

-

Crowe is waiting for her when she gets out, perched up on the nurses station completely impervious to the matron’s glare.

“Well?”

Luna smiles, “I got it.”

Crowe grins and holds her hand up for a hive-five. Laughing breathlessly Luna slaps their hands together and the sound echoes around the hallway.

The door to Luna’s interview room opens and Dr Melrose steps out, shaking hands with each of Luna’s interviewers as they leave. Each of them drop Luna a smile as they make their way over to the elevator and she grins back bashfully. Melrose approaches and holds out her hand and Luna shakes it warmly between both her own.

“Congratulations,” Melrose says earnestly, “You’ll be a tremendous asset to the team.”

“Thank you.”

“Why don’t we meet for breakfast tomorrow and we can go over your new schedule?”

“Perfect,” Luna says, “Just drop a time in my diary. I’ll be there.”

Dr Melrose bids her farewell and Crowe slips off the desk to give her a hug and drop a sisterly kiss on her head.

“I think I might just be about to put the cherry on top of your day,” Crowe says.

“What do you mean?”

Crowe reaches behind her for something on the desk.

“You had a delivery while you were in there.”

And from behind her pulls a small bouquet of flowers, a beautiful mix of purple hyacinths and white poppies arranged exquisitely among miniature fern fronds.

And this time Noctis isn't leaving his meaning up to interpretation because a tag has been looped around one of the stems, on it just two words.

 _I’m sorry_.

Overwhelmed and relieved, Luna cries.

-

Noctis answers his phone on the second ring.

“ _Hi_ ,” he says, “ _I missed you_.”

“You have nothing to be sorry about,” she says at once, just so he _knows_ , and then breathes, “I missed you too.”

Her voice still sounds a little wet and it’s undoubtedly that which makes Noctis demand, “ _Are you okay_?”

“I’m wonderful,” she promises, “I had my fellowship interview today.”

“ _Did_ _you_ -”

“Yeah, yeah I did,” Luna tells him. Overjoyed again she laughs, a few stray tears leaking free.

“ _I’m so proud of you_ ,” Noct says brightly, “ _Soon as I can I’m gonna spoil the shit out of you_.”

“Can’t I see you tonight?” Luna asks disappointed.

Noct sighs, “ _I got a call just after I dropped your flowers off. Someone's florist cancelled and their wedding is_ tomorrow _. I’ll probably be here all night._ ”

Luna bites her lip.

“Can I just come and keep you company - at least for a while? I’ve been meaning to come and see the shop anyway.”

Noct hesitates and the silence is _loud_.

“ _Don’t you have your dinner with Ravus tonight?_ ”

“Fuck Ravus,” Luna says and then nervously tucks herself further into her corner in case any patients walk past.

Noctis laughs so hard she hears him _choke_.

“ _I don’t expect you to not talk to him,_ ” he says when he’s recovered, “ _He’s your brother. Family is important - please don’t - not for me._ ”

“I’m mad at him right now,” Luna tells him, “I didn’t realise what he’d done, not until you were telling me about your Dad and realised your last name is the company Ravus moved here to -”

“ _It’s okay_ ,” Noct says, “ _But at some point - talk to him, okay? Feel free to yell if you like, astrals know I wish_ I _could_.”

“That’s something I could actually arrange, you know,” Luna teases. And Gods does it ever feel good joke with him again.

Noct sighs and Luna closes her eyes and leans against the wall, just listening to him breath.

“Tonight?” she presses, “I’ll bring food. You have to stop to eat right?”

“ _Of course I want you to come, but you can forgo the food okay, my friend Iggy is already dropping some off. He always makes enough for four, you can help me eat it._ ”

“I promise to eat all the peas.”

Noct laughs again and Luna’s heart feels so full it might burst.

“ _I’ll text you the address, okay_?”

-

 _Blooming Lovely_ doesn’t seem like much in the dark.

The exterior walls are painted what seems to be a deep, forest green and the name is stencilled across both windows in beautiful calligraphy with just the phone number underneath. There’s no hint of opening times anywhere and Luna assumes this is on purpose so Noct can keep as odd hours as he likes. A sign baring the word _Closed_ hangs in the door, off centre and off balance.

Peering through the window she can see a shaft of light spilling across the back of the store from an open doorway.

Luna taps on the window and a figure passes into that light immediately, Noctis’ form becoming more obvious the closer he gets. He smiles at her through the glass as he unlocks what sounds like a complicated system of locks and then pulls it open enough for her to pass through.

Luna waits until he’s locked it back up and then plants both her hands on his shoulders and pulls him down for a long kiss.

Noctis groans into her mouth, hands falling naturally to her waist and pulling her body tight to his.

Mostly Luna had missed _him_ but she’d been bereft without this too, even though she’d really only had a brief a taste of it what it means.

It was really, really great and she did not get enough time simply to bask in that before.

Noct reaches down with one hand and gives her ass a playful squeeze and she giggles right into his mouth and keeps on kissing him.

“How’s the work going?” Luna asks when she starts to feel guilty for keeping him from it.

“Not too bad,” Noctis says, “She wants everything white so I don’t have to balance the colours so much just shape and form.”

Taking her hand he leads her through the small shop, past buckets of cut flowers in an astonishing array of colours. It’s simple inside, just a few landscapes of natural flower meadows and streams displayed high on the walls above the metal racks used to display stock.

Luna wonders if Prompto too them.

The back room is easily as big as the shop and Noctis helps her step around buckets and _buckets_ of white flowers and stacks of green foliage until they're stood next to a wide metal table littered with leaves and snippings surrounding a fan of flowers. Noct reaches beneath the table and drags out a round, padded stool on wheels, brushing a few bits of debris off the top and patting the surface in invitation.

Luna sheds her coat, passing it into Noct’s hands and settles onto the proffered seat as he goes to hang it on the rack.

“Tell me when you’re bored,” Noct says smiling and he steps back up to the table, kissing the top of her head before starting to gather the blooms.

Luna shakes her head and scoots closer to him, placing one of her feet in front and one behind him she rolls the chair until she’s pressed right up against his side, arms wrapped around his hips and face pressed into his ribcage.

Luna mumbles, “Tell me when I'm annoying _.”_

Noctis chuckles but starts on with his work arranging the flowers so they form a sort of dome, trimming the very bottoms and then tapping the cut ends against the side. Noctis rearranges the dome and then trims and taps again before seemingly deciding it’s ready for the next stage and reaching for a spool of green tape off to one side.

“Gimme your hand?” Noct requests and Luna raises the one closest to the table, offering it up for use.

Noct gently bends back three of her fingers and hooks the tape over the other one using Luna’s grip on it to help find the ends and then pull free a long length which he uses to bind the stems together, checking the shape of the dome all the while.

Noct nudges her with his hip and says, “Tell me about your new job? Was the interview terrifying?”

And so as Noct makes up three more bouquets – bridesmaids he tells her - the same way Luna recounts her day. She tells him how nervous she was for her interview despite being qualified and having worked the requisite hours in paediatrics already and how _excited_ she is for the change despite the fact that _technically_ she’s taking a step down in hierarchy and a not inconsequential pay cut for the next few years.

Noct worries then, about her finances, if she doesn’t make up with Ravus but Luna would probably still make enough to get by even if she didn’t still have almost seventy-five percent of the money Ravus had granted her when she’s graduated from med-school.

“I’ve had my share,” Luna says, “More than I could ever need. He won’t - he can’t keep from _me_ what I’m owed.”

Noct accidentally cuts a lily of the valley too short and rather than grow frustrated he simply tucks it behind Luna’s ear and turns back to his work.

After about an hour or so Luna gently suggests Noctis takes a break. She has no idea how much work he still has to do but judging from the number of flowers he has it’s _a lot_.

“Okay, okay,” Noct agrees laughing when Luna digs her fingers into his ribs to stop him from reaching for another set of flowers.

Noctis puts down everything and then walks over to the sink in the other corner to wash his hands before rummaging through the short fridge tucked away back there.

“Iggy made soup,” Noct tells her, “So it looks like there aren’t any veggies in it but there always are.” Noct grimaces as he pops the lid on the container and slides it into his microwave.

“There’s some rolls and stuff in that bag -” Noct says pointing over his shoulder at a reusable shopping bag on the counter behind him, “- and some other snacks and stuff.”

Luna climbs up off her stool and goes to investigate, unearthing not only the aforementioned bread and snacks but bowls, plates and cutlery for two as well.

“Did you tell Ignis I was coming?” Luna asks, unpacking everything.

“Huh? Oh!” Noct appears at her shoulder briefly, kissing her cheek before turning back to the microwave when it beeps, “Mentioned it yeah. Guess he didn’t trust me to take you upstairs to eat this - which I guess turned out to be right.”

“You live upstairs?” Luna asks in surprise. Judging from his car and what she _now_ knows of his financial situations she would have expected something more luxurious.

“It’s convenient,” Noct says, “And more than enough space for me.”

The soup is delicious and no matter what Noct says it absolutely does _not_ have a _carroty undertone._ Noctis eats it quite happily anyway and then begrudgingly lets Luna wash up the dirty dishes as he returns to his work.

Luna takes as long as she can over it but when the dishes are clean _and_ dry _and_ she’s unpacked any perishables into the fridge she’s admittedly a little antsy. She's in need of attention she realises – affection, even - but desperately doesn't want to be in the way.

She’s wandering the space, admiring the flowers but not touching when Noct walks a finished piece over to the non-working table and Luna admires what seems to be some sort of table decoration.

“If you’re bored you can go home,” Noctis reminds her, “Or I can take you upstairs and you can sleep here if you want. I’ll still be going when you get up for work probably.” Noct wraps his arms around her waist and she turns into his embrace, one arm over and around his shoulders the other pushing up into the back of his long hair.

“That long?” Luna asks, “All night?”

“Probably,” Noct says, “Might be able to get a little cat nap in somewhere.”

Luna bites her lip and she watches Noctis’ eyes narrow in on the gesture.

“Might you consider trading that cat nap for something else?” Luna dares to tease.

Noctis grins, “Depends what the offer is. I do love sleep, as you know.”

Luna pulls away smirking and crosses back to the other table - without _finished_ products on them - and turns as though she’s going to hop on.

“How sturdy is this?” she asks, trying not to laugh.

“Strong enough for an adult human,” Noct confirms, “Or two.”

Luna grins wickedly and hops up onto the table, inhaling raggedly at the chill.

Noct smirks at her and fold his arms over his chest, hip half cocked.

Holding eye contact with him Luna reaches beneath her skirt and deftly removes her panties, rolling them to her knees and catching them on one ankle when they naturally fall the rest of the way. Noct only looks away from her face to watch the path her panties makes as they sail across the room under one swift flick of her foot.

“You know I have a bed upstairs?” Noct reminds her.

Luna thinks on that fact for a moment. It _does_ sound nice, going upstairs and rolling around on a comfortable mattress with him. _However_.

The sensation of the cold metal against the back of her thighs is already quite thrilling even through the fabric of her skirt _and_ hosiery.

Luna drags her skirt up her legs, hissing when she shifts to settle onto the table without that barrier. Tucking it up around her waist out of the way Luna slowly spreads her legs so the top of her thigh highs and sex are on full display.

“Unzip your dress,” Noct demands and Luna scrambles to comply as Noct closes the distance between them in four easy steps, hands already unsnapping his jeans.

-

The metal has long since warmed beneath her back but Luna’s still trembling gently in Noct’s hold wondering how many of the marks on her chest will still be there come morning.

Noct brushes a kiss over one of them, right on the swell of her breast then reaches to gently pull the cup of her bra back over as he straightens up and slips free. Luna shivers.

Noct helps her sit up and together they laugh at imprint left on the table, a ring of condensation the perfect match to Luna’s back. Noct pulls the straps of her dress up her arms and feeling oddly light-headed Luna tucks him back into his pants giggling.

Noct shakes his head, grinning, and their noses brush together.

“Hey,” Noct says, “Will you do something for me?”

“Of course,” Luna says instead of teasing, _What? Something else?_ Like part of her wants.

Noctis crouches down suddenly and straightens up with a book in his hands. He helps shift her dress back over her lap and then deposits _Common Flowers and their Meanings_ into it with a fond kiss and a mumbled, “Wait right there.”

Luna laughs and starts to flick through the pages. She calls, “And here I thought you just _knew_ what all these meant.”

“Mostly I do,” Noct yells back voice muffled at first then clearer as he edges back into the room, “But it never hurts to be able to check.”

Whatever he went to retrieve is carefully hidden behind his back and when Luna tries to lean around him to look he pinches her chin between his thumb and forefinger to gently turn her face the other way.

“Wait,” Noct teases and he reaches for a length of white ribbon.

Pouting Luna turns back to the book, idly looking at the colourful pictures while Noct turns his back to her and does _whatever_ it is he’s doing.

Luna turns the page and then Noct slides a simple trio of flowers on top of it; one pink, one white and one red. Luna doesn’t know what type of flower it is exactly but each of them is _beautiful_ , boasting even concentric circles of neat petals that curve in on themselves slightly and come to an almost sharp point on the end.

“They’re dahlias,” Noctis provides.

Smiling softly Luna quickly turns to the contents list at the back and skims until she finds the page number for dahlias.

 _Commitment_.

Grinning broadly Luna snaps the book closed and tosses it to one side. Flowers safely in one hand she cups Noct’s jaw with the other.

“Are you asking me to go steady?” Luna teases hoping to alleviate some of the pleasant but heavy feeling pressing down on her chest.

Noct rolls his eyes, “Whatever the _thirties_ version of steady is, yeah.”

Luna tugs on his jaw to pull him on for a kiss but it’s all a bit _teethy_ because neither of them can stop grinning.

“I’ll have to let Crowe know she can officially call you Lover Boy,” Luna tells him.

“And I’ll have to _meet_ Crowe,” Noct says.

Luna hums, “We’ve got time.”

\- - -

_One year later_

\- - -

Luna presses a cotton ball against the tiny bubble of blood and tells Riley what a big brave girl she is.

“Do you want a chocobo or a moogle sticker?” Luna asks her.

Riley presses a little finger to her mouth as she thinks. Confident as anything she tells Luna, “I want both.”

“It just so happens,” Luna says happily, “That I have some with both on them right here.”

Riley giggles happily, needle all but forgotten as Luna carefully covers the little puncture wound with a cartoon chocobo and moogle blowing kisses at each other across the length of the band aid.

There’s a knock on the door and Riley’s mother pokes her head in the door, “How’s she doing?”

“Perfect,” Luna tells her honestly, “I’ll take these samples down and come back in a little while once we have something okay?”

Luna slips from the room, waving bye-bye to Riley until the door has completely closed.

A nurse comes over to take the samples and Luna hands them off gratefully.

Dr Melrose is filing something away when Luna approaches the desk. Nodding to the far corner of it she tells Luna, “That man of yours passed through while you were busy - left you something.”

“Like always,” says one of younger nurses. She's definitely jealous but Luna's too happy to care.

Luna’s disappointed to have missed him, sure, but it’s no matter, she’ll see him soon enough.

Luna scoops up the two roses and though they might clash, one bright red, the other palest lavender, the intent behind them would be clear even if Noct _wasn’t_ long past leaving these things to interpretation.

An indication of where they started to where they are now.

Hanging from one of the stems is not, like normal, a short note but a Polaroid of two dogs, one pure white and the other darkest grey with white markings on their face and chest.

Already knowing where this is going Luna smiles and flips the photo over to read the back. In Noct’s slightly untidy scrawl it reads: _these two would love the garden at the new house. lets go see them at the shelter when you get off work? love you - N_

Luna looks at the wonky heart scribbled next to his initial and supposes there really _is_ no harm in going to meet them.

**Author's Note:**

> I could have written this forever.  
> Boss Luna going ahead with her goals even when her heart is broken because she don’t need no man. She’d just like a particular one very much thank you.
> 
> Come say hi on twitter! @Ginger_El_


End file.
